Cities

The IRP published its first report on City-Level Decoupling: Urban Resource Flows and Governance Transitions in 2013. The report analyzed the role of cities as spatial nodes where the major resource flows connect as goods, services and wastes, and how infrastructure directs material flows and therefore resource use, productivity and efficiency in an urban context. It made the case for examining cities from a material flow perspective, while also placing the city within the broader system of flows that make it possible for it to function.

While this first report framed many of the issues related to resource flows within cities, the Panel will now deepen its work on the topic with the assessment: Resource Implications of Future Urbanization – A City-Region Perspective. It is estimated that 60% of urban infrastructure required by 2050 is yet to be built, and there have been numerous projections of urbanisation trends over the next decades. However, none have considered what the implications are in terms of resources. Building upon existing these projections for urbanisation trends and material flow analysis (MFA) for diverse cities, the IRP will set out to calculate the resource implications of future cities, in terms of new urbanisation, but also retrofitting of existing infrastructures.

This ambitious study will examine urban regions, rather than cities in the narrower sense (since the flow of resources into and out from cities is mainly in relation with their hinterlands or external areas), and will examine both residential and economic activities and requirements. It will address different types of cities by density, trade (net producing cities versus highly consuming cities), and address areas within cities by socio-economic status. It will focus on seven key infrastructure provisions: water, energy, transportation, building materials, sanitation, food supply, and public spaces.

Building upon previous work of the International Resource Panel on Decoupling Natural Resource Use and Environmental Impacts from Economic Growth, this report examines the potential for decoupling at the city level. While the majority of the world’s population now live in cities and cities are where most resource consumption takes place, both the pressures and potentials to find ways to reconcile economic growth, wellbeing and the sustainable use of natural resources will therefore be greatest in cities.

Analysing the role of cities as spatial nodes where the major resource flows connect as goods, services and wastes, the report ‘s focus is how infrastructure directs material flows and therefore resource use, productivity and efficiency in an urban context. It makes the case for examining cities from a material flow perspective, while also placing the city within the broader system of flows that make it possible for it to function.

The report also highlights the way that the design, construction and operation of energy, waste, water, sanitation and transport infrastructures create a socio-technical environment that shapes the “way of life” of citizens and how they procure, use and dispose of the resources they require. Its approach is innovative in that it frames infrastructure networks as socio-technical systems, examining pressures for change within cities that go beyond technical considerations. The importance of intermediaries as the dominant agents for change is emphasized, as well as the fact that social processes and dynamics need to be understood and integrated into any assessment of urban infrastructure interventions and the reconfiguration of resource flows.

A set of 30 case studies provide examples of innovative approaches to sustainable infrastructure change across a broad range of urban contexts that could inspire leaders of other cities to embrace similar creative solutions. Of course, innovations in and of themselves do not suffice if they are not integrated into larger strategic visions for the city, and as each city is unique, interventions need to be tailored to the set of challenges and opportunities present in each case.

Reports & Publications

Unlocking the Sustainable Potential of Land Resources: Evaluation Systems, Strategies and Tools

Land resources are one of nature’s most precious gifts. They feed us and help our societies and economies to thrive. Some 2.5 billion agricultural smallholders worldwide....

Global food systems have radically changed over the last 50 years. Food production has more than doubled, diets have become more varied (and often more energy-intense) satisfying people’s preferences ...

Options for Decoupling Economic Growth from Water Use and Water Pollution

Global trends point to a relative decoupling of water – that is, the rate of water resource use is increasing at a rate slower than that of economic growth. The Options for Decoupling Economic Growth from...

Water is an essential resource for virtually all aspects of human enterprise, from agriculture via urbanization to energy and industrial production. Equally, the many uses for water create pressures...

The continued increase in the use of metals over the twentieth century has led to a substantial shift from geological resource base to metal stocks in society. This report reviews the relevant literature on this topic.